Above Average Pittsburgh Pirates Blog

Starling Marte Named to Sporting News NL All-Star Team

On Wednesday, Sporting News came out with their National League All-Star team for the 2016 season. Starling Marte was one of the three outfielders who were named. The other two were Christian Yelich of the Miami Marlins and Yoenis Cespedes of the New York Mets.

Marte’s all-around game was on display again this year. In 529 plate appearances, he batted .311, which was tops among NL left fielders, while posting an OPS of .818 with a 117 OPS+. His 47 stolen bases was a new career best. Marte had another strong season defensively in left field, as he recorded 17 outfield assists and had an 11.6 UZR/150. Overall, Marte was close to being a five-win player with a 4.9 WAR.